Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. Sophos Intercept X

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Score 8.3 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (formerly Microsoft Defender ATP) is a holistic, cloud delivered endpoint security solution that includes risk-based vulnerability management and assessment, attack surface reduction, behavioral based and cloud-powered next generation protection, endpoint detection and response (EDR), automatic investigation and remediation, managed hunting services, rich APIs, and unified security management.
$2.50
per user/per month
Sophos Intercept X
Score 8.9 out of 10
N/A
Sophos Endpoint Protection (Sophos EPP) with Intercept X is an endpoint security product providing an antivirus / antimalware solution that when upgraded with Intercept X or Intercept X Advanced provides advanced threat detection and EDR capabilities.
$28
per year per user
Pricing
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSophos Intercept X
Editions & Modules
Academic
$2.50
per user/per month
Standalone
$5.20
per user/per month
Intercept X Advanced
$28
per year per user
Intercept X Advanced with XDR
$48
per year per user
Sophos Managed Threat Response
$79
per year per user
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSophos Intercept X
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsPricing is for a 3-year commitment. Government and Education pricing available.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSophos Intercept X
Considered Both Products
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
We have evaluated other products, such as Sophos, Trend Micro, and others. The advantage of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is having a single subscription with Office 365 full packet, antivirus, and one drive with backup all in one subscription. Very easy to manage.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
The fact it is integrated into the Microsoft 365 licensing our customers already purchase makes it an easy choice.
Sophos Intercept X
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSophos Intercept X
Endpoint Security
Comparison of Endpoint Security features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
8.2
51 Ratings
4% below category average
Sophos Intercept X
9.2
19 Ratings
8% above category average
Anti-Exploit Technology8.049 Ratings8.619 Ratings
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)8.550 Ratings9.619 Ratings
Centralized Management7.950 Ratings10.019 Ratings
Hybrid Deployment Support7.810 Ratings8.03 Ratings
Infection Remediation8.250 Ratings9.819 Ratings
Vulnerability Management8.348 Ratings8.44 Ratings
Malware Detection8.551 Ratings9.819 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSophos Intercept X
Small Businesses
SentinelOne Singularity
SentinelOne Singularity
Score 9.1 out of 10
SentinelOne Singularity
SentinelOne Singularity
Score 9.1 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
SentinelOne Singularity
SentinelOne Singularity
Score 9.1 out of 10
SentinelOne Singularity
SentinelOne Singularity
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
Score 8.7 out of 10
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
Score 8.7 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSophos Intercept X
Likelihood to Recommend
8.2
(71 ratings)
9.3
(36 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(2 ratings)
Support Rating
9.0
(5 ratings)
8.1
(12 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSophos Intercept X
Likelihood to Recommend
Microsoft
Usually we had lots two platforms tasked with scanning exposures, anti-malware and provision for information and threat management. But with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint we have an all inclusive platform that even integrate with other Microsoft security apps such as Microsoft Defender for Cloud for enhanced threat insights and visibility.
Read full review
Sophos
To be frank, this product is fairly expensive. So I would recommend this to companies that are mid-sized or larger to condone the cost of the purchase. It does save me a significant amount of time in my day - being able to glance at the dashboard and see if there are any outstanding issues that require my attention, as not much digging must be done to accomplish this. So for our company, with a short-staffed IT department, it's incredibly helpful to us. We also qualify for Educational pricing which brings the cost down - which helps tremendously
Read full review
Pros
Microsoft
  • It provides a unified security experience when combined with other Microsoft products such as Microsoft Defender for 365 and Azure Defender.
  • It has an excellent dashboard and centralized view that make it easy to see and control everything from one location.
  • It's an EDR tool designed to help you understand incidents and alerts better.
  • Real-time detection of attacks and prompt endpoint device responses. It effortlessly interacts with additional Microsoft security products.
Read full review
Sophos
  • Sophos Intercept X is great at preventing malware infections and rolling back their effects. I have seen this happen hundreds of times since we installed it
  • When combined with Sophos Central, you have an easy to use dashboard where you can manage all installations from a single pane of glass.
  • It's easy to deploy on machines and stays updated.
  • Good reporting features including alerts sent to the admin if there's ever something wrong with it.
Read full review
Cons
Microsoft
  • Does not allow for remediation from the management console.
  • The ticket system doesn't alert the person assigned to the ticket.
  • You have to submit requests for whitelisting applications.
  • Scanning exclusions are tricky to find.
  • Adding devices, especially Apple devices, is very cumbersome.
Read full review
Sophos
  • Sophos OOTB policies are very strict and they don't offer anything less strict without you creating new custom policies. I'm sure this is deliberate because the product starts you out in the safest way possible but it means that you will have lots of calls to your tech support desk when you first deploy it unless you do somewhat extensive testing beforehand.
  • Sophos Intercept X is currently broken (at least the DLP component) by having secure boot turned on in the UEFI/BIOS. If any user wants to be able to write data to a USB drive or floppy from their PC (yes we still have a couple users who need to use floppies) we have to turn off secure boot on their PC, even if the DLP policy for that user/PC combination specifies that the user and PC are allowed to write to USB/floppy. This would be a very serious problem if it weren't for the fact that we have very few users who need to write files to USB. For us it's OK but I bet it would be a deal-breaker for others.
  • I don't see a whole lot of evidence that Intercept X is any different than any other anti-virus, so maybe their admin alerts just don't clearly identify when they have identified a zero-day threat or maybe we just haven't had any zero-day threats.
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Likelihood to Renew
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Sophos
We have gotten a great product for the price. Easy to maintain and set up on new devices. Support is great and easy to work with and understand.
Read full review
Usability
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Sophos
Very easy to use
Read full review
Support Rating
Microsoft
The first time I tried to onboard my macOS endpoints to MDE I struggled for quite a bit. I had to reach out to Microsoft's MDE support team. The tech was very helpful in walking me through the steps during a screen share session
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Sophos
Most of the support reps are fantastic. There have been a few though that have had to be escalated via Account Manager when they haven't followed up but this is a rare instance, and often followed up by the Support Manager for APAC.
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Sophos
Best thing was the help pushing out via group policy and was able to get instructions for that on sophos site
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Microsoft
in an overall protection sentinelone is providing better protection for us, but as it comes with subscription's limitation, we have to be really careful in managing the licenses, the MS Defender for endpoint is providing us a decent protection which we are not complaining about, why we chose them ? as mentioned, this is coming with our subscription
Read full review
Sophos
Webroot Endpoint Protection is not even in the same league as Sophos Intercept-X. I have tested and compared both sides by side, run simulations and it's not even close. Plus the Sophos central management is so much better. Easier to view user activities and apply policies and remediate threats. Sophos is the clear winner between these two products.
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Return on Investment
Microsoft
  • By providing robust threat protection, Defender for Endpoint can prevent downtime caused by security issues. Employees can work without interruptions, leading to increased productivity.
  • By significantly decreasing the frequency of security incidents like malware infections and data breaches, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint can protect your network. The cost of incident response, cleanup, and potential regulatory fines are reduced as a result of the decrease in events.
  • The implementation and configuration of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint may require an initial investment in licensing, training, and deployment, which can temporarily affect ROI.
  • The cost of licensing can be substantial, especially for larger organizations. This cost needs to be factored into the ROI calculation.
Read full review
Sophos
  • Once our technical and commercial areas got certified, the ROI over the time spent, is great. Actual customers, and/or new ones with other tools, feel safe and advised, once they get in touch with us.
  • When Sophos EndPoint is being compared against Web Management Tools (competitors), we have failed to deliver, nevertheless, there is a version of Sophos Central (Cloud) which achieves this requirement at 100% and more, since is Cloud Based (on AWS).
  • We are grateful to be on Sophos "Radar" as a Platinum Partner, and "The Americas" valued partner, we have seen our business grow, thanks to this kind of technology, throughout the years.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Screenshots

Screenshot of blocked activitiesScreenshot of Detects & respondsScreenshot of discovers vulnerabilityScreenshot of Eliminates blind spotsScreenshot of Risk management

Sophos Intercept X Screenshots

Screenshot of Screenshot of Screenshot of